Remote access VPNs are a perfect match for businesses that value giving their employees the freedom to work from anywhere and, at the same time, want to protect their network against security lapses and cyberattacks.
In this article, I’ll explain the many ways a remote access VPN enhances a business’s security, from ensuring remote employees are able to securely access company resources to prevent unauthorized entry into the network.
I’ll also shed light on some of the other benefits of RA VPNs compared to traditional on-premise VPNs, so make sure to read until the end.
How remote access VPNs enhance business security?
In a nutshell, a remote access VPN encrypts the employee’s web traffic. This means that all of their interactions with the company’s network, including sending and receiving sensitive business information, such as account logins, client details, messages, or reports, are sent through an end-to-end encrypted tunnel in uncrackable code.
Encryption basically means that snoopers can’t read the employee’s traffic, even if they’re able to intercept it over an open and unsecure public Wi-Fi network. Keep reading to find out how this benefits businesses.
Securing remote access
As the name suggests, a remote access VPN’s first and biggest use case is allowing an organization’s remote workforce secure access to the resources they need, irrespective of where they are on the map and what internet source they’re connected to (it could be an unsecured public Wi-Fi network, too).
Since we’re on the topic, it’s worth discussing the dangers of public Wi-Fi networks. While they offer easy internet access when you’re out and about outside the comfort of your home Wi-Fi, they’re rife with opportunistic cybercriminals.
Basically, public Wi-Fi networks are often unsecured (they lack encryption and don’t require a password to access), which can expose you to significant risks. Bad actors can intercept any sensitive information you share using public Wi-Fi, such as financial details, login credentials, and personal messages, which would then open up the jarring possibility of you falling prey to identity theft, financial loss, etc.
Furthermore, cybercriminals can exploit the public Wi-Fi’s lax security measures to infect your device with malware, use session hijacking to gain access to your online accounts or target you with phishing attacks.
In the event that the compromised individual is an employee working remotely, any of the above scenarios could wreak havoc on the company they work for. Keep in mind that just one compromised remote user device is enough to put the company’s entire network at risk, making it vulnerable to ransomware attacks, data theft, malware infection, etc.
Protection against unauthorized users
With a remote access VPN guarding your business’s internal network, you can rest assured that only authorized individuals will be able to access private company resources. How? Well, remote access VPNs require users to authenticate themselves before they can enter the network.
This authentication process involves entering specific login credentials (which only you can provide) and additional security measures such as multi-factor authentication to ensure that any login is indeed from an authorized person.
Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, the VPN routes all of the users’ web traffic through encrypted tunnels, which makes it impossible for bad actors to infiltrate any vulnerability and gain access to the company’s network. It’s also worth noting that RA VPNs also allow you to set up a dedicated server for your employees, which will provide you with even better access control.
Implement zero-trust network access
This is taking authorized access one step further. Basically, businesses can use remote access VPNs in a zero-trust network infrastructure, wherein remote employees must authenticate themselves each time they want to access a different part of the company’s network. It’s like dividing your entire house (the company’s network) into different rooms, locking all of those rooms, and then requiring users to verify their identity every time they want access to a different room.
Not only will this almost completely eliminate the possibility of a hack or security breach, but it will also allow businesses to enforce hierarchy. For example, only managers get access to the section of the network that stores employee performance reports. Simply put, RA VPNs allow businesses to easily and better manage user connections, monitor access, and deploy policies without having to undertake complicated on-site configurations.
Secure devices
Another benefit of remote access VPNs is that they allow organizations to safely implement BYOD (bring-your-own-device) policies. For example, small businesses and startups that can’t quite afford to provide their employees with office-only devices will be able to secure the connections between employee devices and their cloud network with the help of a remote access VPN.
Even better, RA VPNs offer compatible (and easy-to-use) clients for all kinds of operating systems, including Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, and Linux. This means businesses don’t need to fret over the device type of their employees.
Prevent throttling
ISPs, or internet service providers, often throttle a user’s internet speeds, meaning they restrict the amount of bandwidth or internet speed available to them. This may be done for various reasons, such as to enforce data limits, manage network congestion, or prioritize bandwidth availability for users who have subscribed to higher-tier plans.
Bandwidth throttling can significantly diminish a remote employee’s ability to download large files or stream videos, meaning they won’t be able to participate in online meetings or, say, watch training videos within the given deadline.
A remote access VPN benefits a business by preventing ISPs from throttling their employees’s bandwidth, allowing them to have ample bandwidth and the fastest internet speeds possible. How? Well, as mentioned earlier, a VPN anonymizes users online by hiding their IP address, which in turn conceals the identity of their data packets. This makes it impossible for ISPs to figure out which user is downloading large files or using a large amount of bandwidth.
Other benefits of remote access VPNs for businesses
Better security is undoubtedly the biggest benefit of remote access VPNs, but they also offer a host of other advantages.
Bypassing geo-restrictions
Seeing as we're talking about businesses that employ individuals from all around the globe, thus giving them freedom of place, it's a big possibility that some of those individuals (especially if it's a large company) are in, or are traveling to, places that have strict online censorship. Some of these places include China, Russia, Turkey, and the UAE.
A remote access VPN spoofs a user's real IP address and assigns them a temporary one – belonging to one of its computers (servers) located in another region. This alters the user’s online location (since the user is then identified by the IP address of the VPN’s server), and by doing so, i.e., by fooling sites into believing that they're in the location of the VPN server they’ve connected to (although they're not), the user is able to sidestep restrictions on the internet in their current place of stay.
These restrictions may look like bans on crucial business communication apps, such as Slack, Skype, and Gmail, as well as important, everyday VoIP apps like WhatsApp, Messenger, etc. It’s also worth noting that a VPN, by masking a user’s IP address, also grants them online anonymity. The ability to bypass such restrictions (and remain anonymous in the process) is crucial for remote employees, even more so if their job description is that of a journalist or researcher.
Another benefit of this is the freedom to access your favorite streaming content, no matter your location. For example, if you're a UK citizen traveling to the US for a short trip, using a VPN to connect to a local server in the UK will allow you to access platforms like BBC iPlayer and Channel 4, which are otherwise unavailable to users outside the UK.
Scalability
Traditional business VPNs can only support a limited number of connections or bandwidth, which makes them inadequate for large or growing organizations that need to be able to provide new users with VPN access almost instantly.
This is where remote access VPNs come in, as they scale easily. Unlike traditional VPNs, RA VPNs don't require the installation of additional hardware or a complete infrastructure overhaul to make room for more users.
Cost savings
Remote access VPNs are significantly more cost-effective than traditional VPN software that requires businesses to invest in hardware, installation, and then day-to-day maintenance. RA VPNs, on the other hand, offer a cheaper (and by all means better, too) alternative to expanding the business’s network access beyond just the physical premises of the office.
What’s more, remote access VPNs are service-based solutions, which means they provide dedicated experts who take care of updates, maintenance, and changes to the VPN’s configuration on behalf of the organization.
The good news keeps coming as remote access VPNs also offer geo-redundancy (their network spans multiple data centers around the world), so they’re a top choice for organizations with employees overseas, as they’ll be able to simply connect to the nearest VPN data center (or server) rather than setting up local VPN servers in those international locations.
FAQs
What is remote access VPN?
A remote access VPN, as the name suggests, is VPN software that's designed to provide remote workers with secure access to their organization's network and the resources therein, irrespective of their location.
The VPN acts as a gateway between the employee's device and the corporate network, allowing for a secure exchange of information by encrypting the data being exchanged between the two endpoints. The data is transmitted through an end-to-end encrypted VPN tunnel, making it unintelligible, which means snoopers can't exploit it.
In other words, a remote access VPN keeps unauthorized users away from the company's network. It does so by employing authentication procedures, such as entering unique login credentials and one-time passwords to verify user identity.
Additionally, the VPN also spoofs the employee's IP address, thus hiding their online activities from hackers, ISPs, and government authorities and allowing them to access banned sites, apps, and networks. This is especially advantageous for employees operating in locations with strict online censorship/surveillance.
How to implement remote access VPN?
First and foremost, make sure you pick the right cloud VPN provider. For this, we recommend checking out various solutions, their offerings (encryption protocols, security features, and server locations), value for money, and ease of use, among other things, and then deciding which one is the right fit for your business.
Next, ask your employees to install and set up the remote access VPN's software (or app) on all the devices they'll be using for work. Setting up would typically include logging in with the credentials you've provided them and choosing the best server location, which would depend on where they are. They may also be required to set up multi-factor authentication via a supported app.
Well, that's all there is to it. However, businesses may also consider offering basic VPN troubleshooting education to their employees. This includes teaching them how to deal with connection drops, sluggish speeds, etc., solutions for which include checking their internet connection, verifying their login credentials, changing server locations, or, if these don't work, reaching out to the VPN provider's customer support team for help.
TechRadar Pro created this content as part of a paid partnership with Nordlayer. The content of this article is entirely independent and solely reflects the editorial opinion of TechRadar Pro.
